The documentation may be a scam.
In the first instance, we advise that you contact HM Courts & Tribunal Services to clarify this, you can use the Court & Tribunal Finder facility via the link in Related Information to do this.
Alternatively, if the letter appears to be from the police referring you to HM Courts & Tribunal Services, then contact Police Scotland to check its authenticity:
If the documentation is found to be a scam then either organisation will advise you accordingly.
There are two types of fixed penalty tickets, endorsable and non-endorsable.
It depends what offence has been committed as to which type of fixed penalty ticket you will receive. It is not automatic that you are given a fixed penalty ticket if you commit one of these offences, you could be prosecuted through the normal channels.
A few examples of endorsable and non endorsable tickets are -
Endorsable
Non-endorsable
Both the photocard and the paper counterpart are required in order to pay the fine and have penalty points endorsed. It is advisable to apply for a new licence straight away, as a new licence may be issued before the due date on the Conditional Offer of a Fixed Penalty Notice expires. You should also inform the issuing office.
If at the end of the 28 day period you still do not have your driving licence and therefore you are unable to make payment, a police report will be raised for the Procurator Fiscal for their consideration of prosecution.
If it was a safety camera that detected your vehicle, on the reverse of the Notice of Intended Prosecution there are three parts you may complete, if you were not the driver you should complete part two naming who was the driver. Or if you were not the owner or the keeper of the vehicle at the time of the offence you should complete part three.
Under Section 172 Road Traffic Act 1988 it is the responsibility of the registered keeper to know who is driving the vehicle at all times. Failure to do so in itself is an offence punishable by a fine of up to £1000 plus 6 penalty points.
If a safety camera detected your alleged offence contact the relevant Partnership for further information. Contact details can be found at the website in related links.
The usual length of time to return a licence is four weeks. If you have still not received your licence back after this length of time you should contact the Sheriff Clerks Office where you paid your fine and they should be able to assist you.
Yes, you can plead not guilty to the ticket. On the back of the ticket there will be information on how to challenge the ticket.
You will then be sent a citation in due course with a date for the court hearing.
If you want to query the ticket you need to write to the address on the ticket stating the reasons why you think the ticket should be cancelled. If it concerns a disabled parking permit then you should include a photocopy of it.
You will then receive a reply from the central ticket office/local authority department. If the ticket has been cancelled you need take no further action; if it has not been cancelled then you will be given a period of time within which to pay the fine
There are two types of ticket:
You can either pay by cheque, cash or by credit/debit card. Payment details are on the back of the ticket.
If you do not pay then you will receive a citation to go to court. You can either then plead guilty by letter or elect to go to court. If found guilty at court you will possibly receive a larger fine.
You should attend at the Sheriff Clerks Office that you have chosen to pay your ticket at as soon as possible during office hours so that the central ticket office can be contacted to see if it is still possible for you to pay the fine and not go to court. This is at the discretion of the central ticket office, as after 28 days a citation will be automatically issued.
The police must serve the notice to arrive within 14 days on the registered keeper. As long as it is posted (within that time limit) 1st class, this is presumed to be good service (though this can be challenged).
For more information on Notices of Intended Prosecution, see SQ557
You should inform your insurance company as the details you provide them form the basis for the quote and the subsequent cover. If any of the details change and if you do not inform them, it may invalidate your insurance cover.
You can produce your documents at any police station in the country, so do not worry if you cannot get to your chosen one. As long as you have your ticket or the producer (HO/RT1) given to you by the police officer it will not be a problem to produce them at another station.
You should seek legal advice from a solicitor. The police or local authority cannot offer you any legal advice as to whether to challenge the ticket or not.
Minor errors on the ticket do not mean that it is automatically invalidated.
The cameras are calibrated once a year as per the set guidelines. The cameras very rarely malfunction and if they do the faults are spotted before any notices of intended prosecution are sent out.
A fixed penalty notice is a conditional offer to an alleged offender for them to have the matter dealt with in a set way without resorting to going to court. It is conditional in that the offence committed falls within the remit of the fixed penalty system and that the alleged offender fits the criteria i.e. would not be liable to disqualification under totting up procedures and is willing to surrender their licence if the matter is endorsable.
The acceptance of the ticket gives the alleged offender options and if they feel that for any reason then or at a later stage to contest the matter then they can, by completing the requisite parts of the form to request a court hearing.
The fact that the time and date may be wrong is not necessarily a bar to proceedings continuing and it would be for the court to decide if those matters seriously affected the alleged offenders right to a fair hearing. The choice is in the hands of the alleged offender.
It also may be worth writing to the appropriate office (details on back of ticket) setting out the reasons why you think the ticket should be made void prior to you officially challenging the ticket. If the ticket has been given out by the local authority and you are not happy with their reply then there is an ombudsman who will review such cases.
It is also important to note that even if it is found that the ticket is invalid then this does not mean an end to the matter. All it means is that, if appropriate the police can proceed by issuing a citation for court. The alleged offender will not then be able to take advantage of the fixed penalty system and if found guilty at court will have a criminal conviction. It is advisable to take legal advice from a lawyer prior to making any decision on this matter.
The purpose of the notice of intended prosecution (NIP) is to inform the potential defendant that he may be prosecuted for the offence he has committed, whilst the incident is still fresh in his memory.
When you receive an NIP it does not automatically mean that you are going to face prosecution, it is a warning that you may face prosecution.
The NIP must be served within 14 days of the offence, otherwise the offence cannot proceed at court. If the details of the driver are not known then it is sent to the registered keeper. So long as the registered keeper is sent it within the time limit, the notice is valid. If the registered keeper has changed address/not informed DVLA etc., as long as the NIP was posted to arrive within 14 days, it is still valid. The registered keeper then has an obligation to identify the driver.
The driver, may then receive further paperwork in due course, but that is not to be confused with the document that is legally required to be sent within the 14 days.
NIPs can also be issued verbally to the driver at the time of the offence or alternatively you could receive a court citation through the post for the alleged offence within the 14 days.
Small mistakes on the notice do not render it ineffective unless it would mislead the potential defendant.
The posted NIP is deemed to be served until the contrary is shown. There is a presumption that it arrived, however it is possible for a potential defendant or other witness to satisfy the court (on the balance of probabilities) that neither he/she (nor the registered keeper where applicable) received the notice.
Yes. If you have a new licence then you must surrender both the paper part and the photocard. It is only a full licence when both parts are present.
An Endorsable Conditional Offer of Fixed Penalty issued in Scotland should be paid at Justice of the Peace Court nominated on the actual Fixed penalty Ticket (however following Scottish Court Unification a payment can be made at any Sheriff or Justice of the Peace Court in Scotland).
Many Courts, if you pay the offer in person, will endorse your licence immediately and return it to you at that time.
You may contact the Scottish Court Service for guidance if you need your licence quickly to ascertain their 'turnaround' times.
NO EXTENSIONS ARE GRANTED WITH REGARDS CONDITIONAL OFFERS OF FIXED PENALTIES.
It states on all of these ticket types that the full amount must be paid, and that part payments or payment by installments cannot/will not be accepted.
Although various prosecution diversionary schemes exist in England and Wales, in Scotland we do not yet offer any alternative penalty for speeding or red light running offences.
The registered keeper or the named person in charge of the vehicle concerned is required by law to name the driver or person responsible for the vehicle at the time of the alleged offence. It is not acceptable to simply say you cannot remember or do not know who was driving it at the time.
If you are unsure who was driving it is advisable to check any records you may have, for example if it is a company vehicle check log books, delivery sheets etc. If it is a family car check diaries, phone records, bank statements etc.
Under Section 172 Road Traffic Act 1988 it is the responsibility of the registered keeper to know who is driving the vehicle at all times. Failure to do so in itself is an offence punishable by a fine of up to £1000 plus 6 penalty points.
If you have had your licence for less than two years:
Under legislation covering new drivers, gaining six or more penalty points on your licence within two years of passing your test will lead to your licence being revoked. You will need to resit and pass the theory and practical driving tests in order to regain your full licence.
If you have had your licence for more than two years:
Twelve points or more on your licence may lead to disqualification from driving. The Court will decide on the length of any disqualification.
Having penalty points on your driving licence may affect your insurance costs and employment.
You need to contact the Central Ticket Office (sometimes called Central Process Bureau or similar) of the force concerned and in most circumstances you will be issued with another copy.
If it was a conditional offer and you have failed to pay, you will be given another opportunity to pay the ticket so you will eventually receive more paperwork.
If it was a citation you must re contact the Central Ticket Office as a failure to appear at court could lead to a warrant for your arrest being issued.
Do not delay. There are time limits on these processes and they can get more expensive (or even lead to your arrest) if you do nothing.
Unfortunately it is up to you as the registered keeper/named person in charge of the vehicle to satisfy the issuer of the ticket that it was not you or your vehicle at the time and place where the alleged offence occurred. Cloning of vehicles, although relatively rare, can happen so you should get in touch immediately with the appropriate body to explain your circumstances. The matter can then be referred to the Police for further investigation.
Please note from 1st March 2017 the penalty for using a mobile phone whilst driving will increase to 6 penalty points and a £200 fine. For newly qualified drivers this could result in your licence being revoked for a single offence.
Under the New Drivers Act, drivers will have their driving licence revoked automatically if they accumulate six penalty points within two years of passing their driving test. They would be required to re-sit and pass both the theory and the practical test again in order to regain their full licence.
There isn't another 2 year period if you pass a test for another category of vehicle e.g. to drive a heavy goods vehicle.
No, the officer issuing the ticket can stick it to any area of the vehicle. Ordinarily officers will attach the ticket to the windscreen because it is most visible in this position. In most cases they will place the ticket under a windscreen wiper in order that it does not blow away, hence the reason it may seem to be a requirement for it to be placed on the windscreen.
Some local areas may have different methods of notification and will not issue a parking ticket in this manner. For example, Officers/Wardens may take a photograph using a digital time stamp and issue the ticket via post. There are also CCTV systems covering parking places which work on the same principle.
